Tracing Starlines
by ArSommers
Summary: ["The Reylo Chronicles", Book 2] Poe confronts Rey about her growing interest in Ben; Rey visits Ben in exile.
1. Chapter 1

"You're seeing him again, aren't you?" Poe asked as Rey climbed aboard her X-wing. She ignored her friend's question, placing a parcel on the floor and securing it with straps.

"Rey," She turned around, determined not to change her mind on the matter but at the same time heeding the concern in her friend's voice. "It's not safe out there," Poe gestured to the glowing planets behind the clouds. "You know just as well as I do how the First Order has sleeper agents on various bases. Our enemy could be anywhere,"

"It's not safe here either," Rey countered, thinking of the massive attack orchestrated by Captain Phasma just a few days ago. "These days we're constantly on the move, so I don't see why a one day trip should be any different,"

"Shouldn't be any different?" Poe asked in disbelief. "The _difference_ here is that the planet you are visiting has Kylo Ren sitting on it,"

"Ben," Rey snapped, sounding more cross than she had intended. "His name is Ben,"

Poe shook his head. "It doesn't matter what he calls himself. He's dangerous,"

"Dangerous isn't what I'd call the man who saved me from Snoke," Rey said, "And betrayed the First Order,"

"All that proves is that he's unpredictable," Poe said. BB-8 twittered an agreement at Poe's feet, popping out his little lighter to indicate how he felt about the matter.

"Not you too," Rey grumbled to the little droid.

R2-D2 sputtered a remark from his holster on the X-wing, trying to hurry the conversation so they could get going.

"Right," Rey looked at Poe. "I'll be back before midday tomorrow. And if it helps any, I've memorized the next ten rendezvous planets and bases. If I can't find you at one of them, I'll send an encrypted transmission and let you know of my location,"

"You're crazy, you know that?" Poe said as Rey hopped out of the spacecraft and onto the floor. "You're too important to the Resistance to be pulling something like this,"

"I'm just one person," Rey said, "Not an army,"

"But you're a Jedi," Poe persisted.

"Not yet,"

Rey knew Poe would keep pushing his unending laundry list of why she shouldn't take her leave, but Rey knew deep down she was doing the right thing. Ever since she and Ben shared a moment in the forest, she'd been more open to what the Force had been whispering in her ear. And when she opened herself to the knowledge it provided, she was touched in ways she never thought possible.

The evil that came from the dark side had left in Ben an un-fillable void, one that constantly demanded power. But when Rey entered his life, she planted the seeds of doubt for all that Kylo Ren stood for. At first Ben despised this wholesome feeling, believing the doubt made him weak. He tried to prove himself wrong, tunneling so far into the darkness that he murdered both his parents in the process. It was only when he realized the two people who truly cared about his well-being were gone that he began to perceive his so-called weakens as strength. There had to be more to the Force than death and destruction, and it had all started with the girl in the beige sash.

As the wars in the stars raged on, the reverse could be said about Rey. At one point she felt that all hope with the Rebels was lost, and she went so far as to call upon the dark side for strength. The power she received was like a sweet wine, but it quickly threatened her with drunkenness, a stupor that would be almost impossible to pull out of. If it hadn't been for Luke's intervention, all that she stood for may have been lost.

This, Rey realized, was what she respected about Ben. He'd all but drowned in the dark side, only to be resurrected in a redemption nobody thought possible.

"Could you quit acting like a worried older brother and hand me that wrench?" Rey asked. Poe folded his arms, refusing to move. "Fine," Rey stalked past him, picked up the tool, and began a minor adjustment to the spacecraft's lower right wing. "If you're not going to help, then you may as well leave. Nothing you say can make me change my mind,"

"What about Finn?" Poe asked softly. "What would he say about all this?"

Rey paused. "Finn isn't with us anymore," she said slowly. "If he was, things would have turned out differently,"

"I'm sure they would have," Poe agreed. "You would be in his arms instead,"

Rey felt tears welling up in her eyes. She knew Poe was right. Ever since her first encounter with him on Jakku, Finn was the first person who'd truly given her hope, even if it was initially a false hope that he was with the Resistance. But he was a beautiful human being, both loyal and kind, even to the end.

"Stay with us," Poe placed his hand on Rey's shoulder. "Help us relocate to another base. You mean so much to the Resistance. If we lost you, I don't know what we'd do,"

The temptation was certainly there; Rey knew she could never abandon her friends, especially in their time of need. But they were in no immediate danger; Ben, on the other hand, was. At one time Ben thought he may be safe within the isolated Ewok colony on Endor, but these days even Ewoks could be bought out.

Rey also knew what it was like to wait, alone, for the return of someone who may never show up. To leave anyone in such an uncertain state would be cruel, and she could not betray Ben like that, not after all he'd done for her.

"I'm sorry," Rey apologized to Poe, "But I have to check in to make sure he is okay. I'm not your only hope,"


	2. Chapter 2

It was hard for Rey to imagine a battle raging on Endor. To her, there was something serene about the quiet interlaced between the tall trees and moist soil. Rey had only been there only a handful of times, but she could never get enough. The atmosphere was so very different from everything she'd known on Jakku's desert, and she relished every piece of natural greenery she laid her eyes on.

Of course, there were still some interspersed remnants from the war; time and plant life, however, had been quick to disrupt the once slick metal, turning the destructive machinery into homes for small feral creatures.

"Come along R2," Rey coaxed as the droid stopped to stare at one of the fallen pieces of the past. "We have to make it to village before nightfall,"

They ended up barely making it on schedule, as it was twilight by the time the two arrived at their destination. They'd taken the back roads to avoid unwanted detection, stopping only to take a few short breaks along the way.

The Ewoks stopped and stared as Rey and R2 passed by, unsure of the circumstances that brought the foreigners to their home. Rey wanted to tell them that everything was okay and that they were not in danger, but she knew they would not understand her language. There were only a select few who'd taken the time to learn basic words and phrases after their encounter with the Rebel alliance, and it was one such Ewok Rey sought that night.

"Rey?" a squeaky voice asked from above her head.

"Wicket," Rey looked up to find the familiar furry creature with an orange hood emerge from his home in the trees. "It's good to see you,"

"Visitor?" Wicket asked.

Rey smiled. "Yes, visitor," she said. "I'm here to see Ben,"

"Ben," Wicket repeated, his eyes glistening. The Ewok had never known Ben as Kylo Ren. In the creature's eyes, Ben was the honorable son of Han and Leia, the couple whom his tribe owed a certain life debt. Descending the staircase that was built into the tree truck, Wicket said "Ben out,"

"Ben is out? Where is he?"

Whatever response Wicket had escaped his vocabulary, so the Ewok made a fist and a motioned in a circle around his mouth.

"Ben is eating?" Wicket shook his head, made two fists, and pulled his right arm backwards. "Archery?" Rey guessed. "Wait…hunting? Hunting for food?" One of those words clicked, and the Ewok nodded.

A smile tugged at Rey's lips. Surely Ben had eaten from a silver platter when he was with the First Order; hunting for his own meal must be quite an experience for him. Still, whether he genuinely wanted to be helpful or was trying to stoke his pride in that he could do anything an Ewok could, there was nothing Rey could do in the meantime but wait.

"Rey eat?" Wicket asked.

"I'm famished," Realizing her word choice went way over the Ewok's head, Rey corrected herself. "I did not eat," she said. "I would love some food,"

"Come, come!" Wicket took her wrist and began to lead her up the staircase.

"Are you okay here R2?" Rey asked over her shoulder. The droid beeped a positive response. Now that they were in civilization, albeit a primitive one, the risk of immediate danger had lessened considerably. Should anything go wrong, the Ewoks would alert them, and the droid would be waiting close by underneath Rey's feet.

"Sit," The Ewok gestured toward a rug in the middle of his small home. Rey did as instructed, sitting cross-legged at a smoothly carved oak table. The Ewok rushed about, putting together a mixture of vegetables and fresh fruit.

"Can I help with the meal?" Rey asked.

"Sit," Wicket said. "Rey guest,"

Rey was still looking around at the ornate organic furniture when she heard a familiar voice outside.

"I was only able to catch one fish," Ben said gruffly as he ducked under the doorway. "Most of them got away before I could even-" He stopped in his tracks. "Rey," Ben said, his voice full of surprise. "You made it,"

Rey immediately stood up, trying not to hit her head on the low ceiling in the process. Now that she saw Ben alive and well, she felt as if a burden had suddenly lifted off her chest. Any worries she had about him being discovered by the First Order could be cast aside, at least for now.

"I said I would come, didn't I?"

"Eat," Wicket said, unintentionally breaking the moment as he nudged his way between the two, placing a tray in front of Rey. "Rey famished,"

"Famished?" Ben asked, a hint of concern in his voice.

"Hungry," Rey corrected. "Not famished. R2 and I had a longer trek today since we landed in the outskirts,"

"Why did you land so far away?" Ben asked as he set the lone fish he caught aside in a basin.

"R2 and I couldn't verify whether or not we were being followed," Rey explained. "We wanted to land further away in the event this happened to be true. We didn't want to bring a war to the village,"

"Bring war," Wicket said, thumping his hand against his chest. "Ewoks warriors. Ewoks fight Empire,"

"I know," Rey said, thinking back to when Leia told her the story of how they'd won the Battle of Endor, "But I did not want to drag you into a fight that could be prevented,"

"You endanger yourself by doing that," Ben said, a serious look crossing his face. "If you had been followed, there would have been no one around to help,"

Rey straightened her back defensively. "I can take care of myself,"

"Not if they'd sent a squadron, or called for backup," Ben said.

Rey grimaced. She hadn't come to argue, nor did she have the strength to do so. In fact, the more she thought about how she felt, the more tired she became. Rey didn't want to retire to bed early, but one of the tactics Luke taught her was to obey her body when it called for rest. A Jedi must be alert at all times, yes, but to deny fatigue was to make oneself vulnerable, and that was certainly not a state she needed to be in for the morrow.

It was still dark when Rey awoke to the sounds of nocturnal birds chirping. She tried to tune them out, but it was no use. The damage was done, and sleep was no longer an option.

Rey swung her feet to the ground and slipped her boots on. If she couldn't sleep, she may as well stretch her legs. So long as she stayed within the perimeter of the village, she would be safe from any attacks, human or animal in nature.

With the grace of a Jedi, she strode past the snoring Ewok and descending the staircase that led to the forest floor. There she found R2-D2 in sleep mode, power-charging himself for the day ahead. Walking around Wicket's tree, Rey had just made it to the edge of the village when a voice from the shadows asked "Where are you going?'

"For a walk," Rey told Ben. "Couldn't sleep,"

Ben sat up, his outline faint in the soft glow of the moonlight. "The sounds of the wilderness are getting to you, aren't they?"

"Not so much getting to me as keeping me up," Rey said. She'd long grown used to the sounds of Resistance fighters talking on base, but the music of animal alien life was still foreign to her. "Did they wake you as well?"

"No," Ben said. "I've grown used to them,"

"Then what woke you at this time of the night?"

"Truthfully?" Ben said, "You,"

Rey felt her face flush; she'd never been one to readily accept invitation nor compliments from the opposite sex. "What do you mean by that?"

"I sensed when you exited the house," Ben explained. "It was if you'd shaken me awake yourself,"

At first Rey was going to say that was preposterous, but she remembered what Luke had taught her: everyone was connected through the Force. Jedis, he said, could sense when other Jedis were in trouble. Such had been the case when Yoda felt his comrades fall at the hands of the Clones.

"I apologize then," Rey said. "I didn't mean to wake you,"

"Don't apologize," Ben said. "At least it gave me another chance to visit with you,"

 _There he goes again_ , Rey thought. She hoped he wasn't one of those lovesick types that became poetic around women he was attracted to. To make matters worse, she wasn't sure how to respond. After all, hadn't she even deflected Finn when he tried to hold her hand all those years ago?

"Come," Ben said. "I want to show you something,"

"Here?" Rey clarified, "Or somewhere else?"

"Here," Ben nodded, shifting over on the large hammock he was lying on to provide room for Rey. "I want you to see something you can't view from that hut Wicket calls a home," Rey obliged, setting herself on the edge of the hammock.

"You'll get a better view if you lie down," Ben said.

Suddenly on guard, Rey stood back up. "What are you playing at?" she asked, her eyebrows knitting together in suspicion at the possibilities of what could be going through Ben's mind.

She was close enough to see Ben look taken aback. "Nothing," he insisted. "I want to show you the stars,"

Rey remained where she was a moment longer, then sighed, sliding onto the hammock so she was lay face up next to Ben.

"Do you see that crescent shape?" Ben pointed towards the sky and made a "C" shape with his forefinger.

Rey squinted. To her, the sky looked like a thousand white dots interspersed on a black blanket. "Not really,"

Ben lowered his hand in an effort to give her a better view. "How about now?"

Rey nestled back and tried again. After about twenty seconds of searching, she found what Ben was pointing to. The shape wasn't a perfect crescent, and some stars were closer together than others, but if she allowed her mind to wander she could see the crescent.

"I used to love looking at that when I was a boy," Ben said, placing his hands behind his head. "I liked to pretend the universe was trying to tell me something, perhaps spelling out words in the stars,"

Rey turned to look at Ben. He had a faraway look in his eyes, completely lost in a memory. "Did you ever find a message?"

"Not really," he said, a smile audible in his voice. "If I tried really hard I could sometimes find full sentences, but nothing I could ever capture again the next time the moon rose. The one and only constant was the 'C'. My mother-" the words caught in Ben's throat for a moment, but he forced himself to continue. "…-she'd say that's all they meant: 'see'. As in venture out into the galaxy and see what lies beyond the white dots of the stars, including the wonderful and mysterious beings that inhabit them,"

"That's a lovely notion,"

Ben nodded. "After a while I began to understand what she meant. Why look at specs in the distance when you can travel and see them for yourself?"

"Did you ever visit any of your crescent planets?" Rey asked.

"No," Ben admitted. "By the time I was old enough to travel on my own, I'd lost my boyish fascination with them. But now, returning to Endor after all these years, I almost want to make the attempt,"

"You'll have the chance one day," Rey said. "Once the fighting has ceased,"

"I wouldn't hold my breath," Ben said, the faraway look vanishing as he returned to the present. "The war has been going on since my mother's birth, and despite the absence of Snoke, there's no signs of the fighting slowing anytime soon,"

Rey propped up her arm and placed her head on her hand. "It's not as farfetched as you think," she said. "If there is one thing we cannot afford to lose, it's hope,"

"I'm the last person who can afford hope," Ben said. "After all the pain I've caused, I deserve to be where I am, not gallivanting halfway around the galaxy,"

"You can't think like that," Rey said. "Sometimes it's the people who've suffered the most that deserve the most hope for a better future,"

The hammock bounced downwards with momentum as Ben sat up. "Why are you doing this?" he asked, his eyes searching her face as if it somehow held the answer. "Why are you risking so much for me?"

Rey had asked herself that very question a thousand times, but had always come up with the same answer. Joining him in a sitting position, she said, "If this war has opened my eyes to one thing, it's that good men can do bad deeds, and bad men every once in a while can do good. Despite what others may think, I believe you are one of the good,"

Ben broke their gaze. "I wish I had your confidence. My entire life I've felt as though the Force has been pulling me between the light and the dark. The ironic thing is that it's no surprise, since I have both the blood of Vader and Skywalker in my veins,"

Rey pulled her legs close to her chest and rested her chin on her knees. "What about now?" she asked curiously. "How do you feel this very moment?"

Ben took another look at Rey, this time as if he were seeing her for the first time. "That when all is said and done, it's the good that's worth fighting for," He lifted his finger, the same one he used to trace the stars, and ran it along the outline of Rey's face. "You made me realize that,"

Rey closed her eyes and searched her feelings. A part of her was terrified that she should fall for a man who had caused so much death and destruction. The other knew that this man, the one sitting next to her, was a different human entirely from the one she'd first met five years ago. Kylo Ren had died, just as Anakin Skywalker had, leaving a new creation in its place. And this newly reformed human was scared and lost, an enemy of both the Empire and the Resistance, with nowhere else to turn.

When all was said and done, Rey realized, Ben was the one who needed a teacher. She needed guidance, and she'd found it in Luke. Perhaps now it was her turn to guide someone else.

Rey opened her eyes. "The Resistance will reject our relationship if they find out," she said. "Even if they realize the changes within your heart, they will stop at nothing to ensure you spend the rest of your life in a cell on some distant ship,"

"I understand," Ben said. "I do not wish to put you in such a position. I know how much you mean to the Resistance, and how much they mean to you. I would not want to disrupt that tie in any way,"

 _Go_ , a voice in her mind said. _Fight side by side with the ones who need you._

 _Stay,_ her heart said. _Do not be afraid to help the one who loves you._

Trembling from the weight of the situation, Rey took Ben's hand in hers. "I took a vow to fight for the light side of the Force," she said. "You are a part of that light. And I'll do whatever I can to help you,"

Ben bent forward, causing his forehead to touch hers. Rey felt his breath on her face, a warm contrast against the damp air of the forest. Had this been any other occasion in her recent past, she would have felt like she was drowning in the darkness; now, she felt like she was bathing in the light.

"Thank you," he whispered, "For believing in me,"

(Thank you all again for your continued support! If you are interested in reading the third story, it is called "To Love a Sith", and can be found on my page.)


End file.
